The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1887-03-10
RESULTS OF FALSE EDUCATION.
The Tendency to Make Idlers Instead OF
Workers.(sirls, Notions


The Tendency to Mako Idlers Instead of
Workers.Girls' Notions.
Neither the boys nor the girls taught Il
won't say educated) in the public schools
want to take hold of actual work for a
living. Very few of the boys are willing
to learn trades, especially IL they are kept
at school long enough to get notions about
being gentlemen. Nearly all expect to
get into some light occupation, something
respectable" and not requiring them to
soil their hands or wear workshop cloth
ing They are willing to be bookkeepers,
or statesmen, or general "clerks," or to be
taken into banks, and many of them have
an eye on brokers offices in Wall street
and many more OH the offices the poll
ticians are always fighting for. But they
don't want to turn to and learn to be car
penters, or blacksmiths, or plumbers, or
bricklayers, or stonecutters, or anything
else that means steady days work with
the hands.
This is partly why New York is swarm
ing to-day with fairly taught young men
looking for situations as clerks or book
keepers or as conductors on the street
cars, or as canvassers of all sorts, and I'M
able to get them. These thousands were
produced, largely by false education,
twenty to thirty years ago, and we arc
producing other thousands, many more
thousands, to-day to replace them when
they go. AS for the girls, does any one
suppose that a public school girl would
think of going out to domestic service? Good
house servants can get from $15 to $50 per
! month, with good food and comfortable
homes, but the public school girl would
''rather die first" than take employment
of that kind. If actually obliged to earn
her living she will become 'saleslady,"
or learn some light trade, OR do copying
or typewriting or telegraphing, neither of
| which perhaps will pay her as well in the
| long run; but hire out in a family she will
| not under any circumstances.
If her parents are able to keep her at
home this girl is often nuisance and
burden. She does not want to do any of
the household work, but she does want TO
be well dressed and to go out great deal
| The chances are that she wants piano.
too. While going to school she heard
other girls talk of having pianos, and per-
| haps some of her friends have these in
| strumcuts Of torture, and she must also
have one. So, may be, a piano is hired
| Gather or mother could not possibly buy
| onel at so or Sc a month, and then the
| "parlors must be refurniShed, the old
things look so shabby beside the piano, :"
and Il carpet and some new furniture are
bought on the installment plan, which
means double price, and so it goes on till
the hard working father and slave of a
mother are at their wits end to keep the
| pot boiling
l do not charge all this to the public
schools, but they are undoubtedly re-
| sponsible for a large part of it, any way.
| The plain public schools Of thirty years
| ago were in the main an excellent institu-
ton, but the fancy public schools of to-day
are in some respects positive evil. III
stead of "fitting our youth TO earn a
living" they unfit them to large extent,
and tend to make idlers in place Of work
| eIs.-New York Cor Detroit Free Press.